2015 numbers are higher than figures reported in 2013 and 2014

Dawn Smallwood's son Nathan died from a fentanyl overdose on March 28, 2015, at the age of 23. Dawn Smallwood attended a rally outside of Confederation Building on Aug. 31. (Mark Quinn/CBC)

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Twenty people died last year from taking drugs in Newfoundland and Labrador, according to statistics obtained from the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner — a notable increase from previous years, with potent opiates fentanyl and oxycodone among the top killers.

Of the 20 drug-related deaths in 2015, 18 people tested positive for one or more opiates.

"I think if more people were more open and start speaking vocally about this, there would be more action in the communties."- Jeff Bourne, executive director of U-Turn

That's up from 2014 and 2013, which each recorded 14 deaths. In 2014, fentanyl was cited as a cause for just three deaths. In 2013, two deaths were linked to fentanyl.

In response to mounting pressure for help in dealing with addictions, the provincial government announced in August it would distribute 1,200 take-home kits, containing naloxone — a drug that reverses overdose effects — along with the needed items to administer it: latex gloves, single-use syringes, alcohol swabs and more.

There were 20 drug-related accidental deaths last year in Newfoundland and Labrador. (CBC News Graphics)

The Department of Health and Community Services says the kits will be distributed at the end of the month at 20 provincial distribution sites. They include the Safe Works Access Program satellite sites, youth and adult correctional facilities, and all four health authorities.

Demand for help increases

Three years ago, U-Turn in Carbonear had about six people attend addictions meetings on a regular basis. Now, they see upwards of 25.

Executive director Jeff Bourne says that uptick has been significant over the last several months, and he's not sure why.

Jeff Bourne and his wife Tammy run the U-Turn Drop-In Centre in Carbonear, in Conception Bay North. (Jeremy Eaton/CBC)

U-Turn offers drop-in services and meetings. By the time addicts go to Bourne's organization, he says they are already using drugs intravenously.

"There [are overdose] cases that went unreported," Bourne said. "You have to understand we're living in a time and generation where mental health and addiction, stigma is still there."

"If you have a loved one who died due to addiction it could be cardiac arrest, there could be respiratory [problem that] stops breathing, and that's what's put on your death certificate."

Fentanyl is a powerful synthetic drug that is often cut with other substances. (CBC)

Bourne thinks that more family members should speak out to break the stigma, and let the public know how dire the situation is.

Fentanyl in particular has sparked stark warnings across the country.

In the Maritimes, fentanyl was a factor in at least 32 drug-involved deaths dating back to 2008.